News, Notes and Photos from the Field (Craig and Pamelia's Blog)

First, a quick look at the cover of the first issue of our Olympic daily app (called Sports Illustrated Live From London if you’re interested in downloading it from the Apple store). It’s free, and we’re finishing a new issue in time for you to receive it by 8 p.m. each day. We were working on it until the wee hours last night, as we will be doing on issues for the next 16 days (while also covering the Games 24/7 for the SI website and, of course, the weekly magazine.

Time is short on this opening day of competition, but here are a few photos from the London Games:

I took this photo of opening ceremony fireworks from our office in the main press center. I liked the reflection of our team (we have more than 50 staffers here) at work.

The London organizing committee has worked hard to make these green Games, and that effort has included transforming a former industrial section of East London into the Olympic Park, the most naturally landscaped cluster of venues I’ve seen at a Games.

As this sidewalk message notes, the Olympic Stadium is for the birds—and the bats.

As suggested by this installation at the press center, there’s a program in place under which ticket-holders can offset the carbon footprint of their trip to the Games. Olympic sponsor BP is underwriting it, and yes, you’re allowed to be cynical about that. Nevertheless, at least it might make more people aware of what the term carbon footprint means.

Recycling is another point of emphasis. Here’s a sign from the press-center cafeteria—which, by the way, serves meat and fowl only from animals raised as humanely as possible (short of actually leaving them alive).

London has become bicycle-crazy. More than 8,000 of these public rent-a-bikes, known as Boris Bikes after mayor Boris Johnson, who has promoted them, are found throughout the city. The recent victory of British rider Bradley Wiggins in the Tour de France has only boosted the number of riders on the streets.

londonpressconftennis

No more time—I'm trying to watch five sports (swimming, road cycling, gymnastics, table tennis and rowing) at once on live-feed video monitors at the moment and my brain can't be splintered any further. All's well back in Maine at The Naturalist's Notebook (as far as I've heard), but please stop in and say hi to Eli, Virginia, Haley and Julie!